Authoring tools, including content-driven treetables, for fluid text

Abstract

Plural versions of an authoring/editing tool for fluid text include both a WYSIWYG editor and a content-driven treetable editor for producing narratives and their behavioral control in a fluid text viewing system environment. The tool includes content-driven treetable visualization and layout mechanisms for authoring and/or editing hypertext narratives, electronic mail threads and other tree-oriented applications. Edit operations are disclosed that permit interactive development and modification of treetables.

1. A (WYSIWYG) What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get computer implemented method of editing fluid text, comprising:
 generating a hierarchical data tree structure; 
 displaying the data to a user in a content-driven tree table format having one or more cells, wherein 
 one of the one or more cells has a plurality of children, at least one of the plurality of children having a height and a width that are different from those of another of the plurality of children; and 
 a first child of the plurality of children has a first content, a second child of the plurality of children has a second content that is larger in size than the first content by a content size, the second child having a height and width that is larger than that of the first child to accommodate the content size difference; 
 editing at least one of the content, structure, visualization parameter and behavior parameter of the data; 
 displaying the edited data in a fluid text narrative format; and 
 storing at least one of the hierarchical data tree structure and the edited data. 
 
   
   
     2. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 converting the edited data prior to displaying the edited data, the edited data being converted to at least one of a machine readable format, and a human readable format. 
 
   
   
     3. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 generating a history of the editing. 
 
   
   
     4. The method of  claim 3 , further comprising:
 displaying edit history. 
 
   
   
     5. The method of  claim 3 , further comprising:
 saving the edit history.